Lemony Chia Seed Muffins – Gluten and Dairy Free

Hellooo and happy Monday, to anyone that might be reading this today! Big smiles and waves. 😉 It’s super gloomy and gray in my corner of the world, it seems to be that way in January, I guess. Booo to winter blues… Luckily, we have bright, sunny and ‘in season’ food to cheer us up, yaaay. Like this whole lemon happy spread we have going on in the picture above. Yes. There’s something so cheery and uplifting about the color yellow, don’t you think? I’m sure there’s an entire psychological explanation about colors and connections to mood receptors in the brain, but we won’t talk about that now. No, let’s just keep it simple and talk about how incredibly amazing these lemony chia seed muffins were and how they all began…

Recently, on my other little planet, called Instagram, Lemon Poppy Seed everything seems to be all the rage. Picture after picture had me drooling and craving this citrusy sweet phenomenon. I knew I had to make it, or something like it. Fast. So, I google searched a gluten free version, since adding certain liquids to certain recipes can be a little tricky. When they said ‘gluten free baking is not for the faint of heart’ they weren’t joking. But don’t be discouraged, there are some pretty fantastical people that exist and they have done all the work for you. Clap if you want; that’s what I did. When I found Davida at thehealthymaven.com , I totally clapped and jumped for joy. True story. Since beginning this health conscious journey, two years ago, I have found it very difficult to find recipes that fit our needs perfectly and that taste incredible, to boot. So, stumbling across this recipe with ingredient perfection; in my opinion…was pretty fantastical. I like that word. It is a word- I looked it up.

I did use some simple substitutions, like; chia seeds over poppy seeds, maple syrup for honey, almond milk over coconut milk (only because that’s what I had on hand) , I made the loaf into muffins (which is a no brainer…you only need to reduce the baking time) aaaand, used my homemade version of an all purpose gluten free mix. Anyway, I absolutely adore the recipe and I’m sure it would have been just as adorable if left exactly as is, but Davida, is the face of positive encouragement, and when I contacted her, she was so sweet and supportive and approved the re-post of her recipe with my modifications. Thank you, Davida! You can find the original recipe here. I encourage you to check it out along with the rest of the blog Aaaand you can also follow her on instagram @davida_thehealthymaven . You will be amazed.

Okay, so now…for the happy recipe, you will need:

2 cups of an all purpose gluten free flour (I used an almond and coconut flour mix…I’ll post the recipe in a separate post; until then, I hear cup for cup and namaste foods is good. I do not recommend bobs red mill’s all purpose mix)

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2.5 TB Chia Seeds (whole not ground)

1/2 cup shredded and unsweetened coconut flakes ( I used the fine stuff used in macaroons )

1/4 C coconut palm sugar

The zest of two lemons

Pre-heat oven to 375 and line a muffin tin with parchment paper baking cups. I love parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour. -I don’t know much about the science of baking, but I think this makes for a more delicate/fluffy texture. Then, add baking powder, baking soda, chia seeds, coconut flakes, palm sugar, and lemon zest. Whisk all dry ingredients together.

1/4 C coconut oil ( I don’t melt mine.. I just put it in there all clumpy and solid and it works just fine. I’m lazy, I guess, or you can buy fractionated coconut oil, whatever floats your boat)

The juice of one lemon

1 cup unsweetened almond milk (we used the vanilla kind, but if you can make your own that would be best. we don’t…another sign of laziness. sigh.) just kidding. 😉

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Place wet ingredients in a stand mixer with flat beater attachment. Beat on medium low. The eggs should be incorporated well and the liquid all one color. If you used a solid brand of coconut oil without melting, you’ll probably see little oily chunks floating around. no worries. Gradually mix in the dry ingredients until wet and dry become one. Do not over mix. Again with the science…something about the air…messing with the texture…or something.

Using an ice cream scooper, scoop and fill muffin tin. with the back of a spoon, dip in a little coconut oil and spread muffin mix to make even, flat tops. Sprinkle with additional shredded coconut flake ‘sprinkles’ if you like. Bake at 375 F for about 20 minutes. Tops will be slightly brown and set. Let cool slightly before serving, but not all the way. Eat. Love. Be happy!

Oh, wait…I just realized, I’m not done. This may just be the longest post ever…To make these muffins a complete ‘happy meal’ you might want to make this salad. I don’t really have measurements, but I have faith in you. I’ll list the ingredients; you chop and throw. I will give you measurements for the lemony vinaigrette though, Ready?

Green leaf lettuce (washed , dried and chopped)

Chrysanthemum greens (washed, dried, stems removed and chopped)

Red radishes (scrubbed and washed clean, ends removed and sliced)

carrots (scrubbed, washed, peeled if you want and sliced)

strawberries (washed and sliced)

pomegranate seeds

Avocado slices, drizzled with lemon juice

Fried eggs over easy in a little coconut oil

Decorate salad as you like. Top with fried eggs. serve and drizzle with the salad dressing posted below:

Blender

1/2 C raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar

3 TB yellow mustard

3 TB raw unfiltered honey

4 cloves of garlic (smashed out of their skins with knife blade and heel of your hand, then sliced)

juice of one lemon (use the left over lemon from the muffin recipe)

1 tsp sea salt or to taste

1/2 tsp black pepper or to taste

1/2 cup unfiltered olive oil (extra virgin/cold pressed)

Place all ingredients, except olive oil, in the blender and run on low speed. increase speed a bit to help the flavors get to know each other better, reduce back to low and slowly add olive oil until emulsified. This will make at least a jar full. You can store any unused dressing in the fridge with a tight fitting lid. I’d say 3-5 days and you should be good? We usually use it all before then.

Drizzle over salad and eat. When you’re done and you have that sweet, lemony, honey mustard + creamy egg yolk, all over your plate. Take your muffins and make them mops. Little happy, sweet and citrusy, moppy kind of muffins. Mmmmmm…have so much fun!

I’m so glad you added the salad recipe at the end..I was on my way to comment and ask for it! Everything looks SO delicious! I love lemon anything and can’t wait to try these muffins AND the lemon vinaigrette salad! Yum, yum:) Thanks so much for sharing, Mary!ReplyCancel